1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to the field of orthopedic braces, and more particularly, to braces for supporting a wrist joint of a wearer.
2. Description of Related Art
Wrist injuries are relatively common orthopedic injuries that occur in a range of environments, such as a home, office or outdoor environment, and can have varying levels of severity. These levels of severity are routinely grouped into two categories, chronic and acute. Acute injuries occur most often due to sudden impacts that involve the large forces caused by an accident or from a collision during athletic activities. Such traumatic injuries to the wrist typically involve broken bones or sprains. Broken bones are usually treated using complete immobilization, while sprains often only require moderate immobilization for a period of weeks depending on the grade of the sprain. Establishing immobilization early after a sprain ensures that the injury does not evolve into a chronic injury.
Repetitive stresses to the wrist joint are believed to be the most common cause of chronic injuries. Repetitive stresses often occur in an office environment, e.g., typing, or during labor activities, e.g., assembly line work. Given the range of environments and types of injuries that can occur to the wrist, it is advantageous to have wrist braces that provide a range of flexibility and support for the wearer. In addition, due to the reoccurring, extended duration of chronic wrist injuries, a comfortable wrist brace is also desirable.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,561,994 to Mills et al. (“Mills”) discloses a wrist brace 10 having both a stretchable portion 12 and a non-stretchable portion 13, as shown in FIG. 1 of Mills. Mills also discloses fasteners having hook or loop material 19, 20, and 21 as well as a longitudinal pocket 22 having a portion of complimentary hook or loop material 22. The wrist brace also includes a splint 30 that may be inserted within the longitudinal pocket 22. The Mills patent is also described as being reversible from either the right or the left hand, at column 2, lines 36-37. A reversible brace enables a wearer to use the same brace for injuries of either the right or left wrists.
The material disclosed in the Mills patent is fabricated of a portion of stretchable material 12 that is capable of stretching to different wearer's wrist sizes when worn. With the fasteners being attached to the elastic material, the wearer can adjust the wrist brace to the desired tension and support depending on the amount of immobilization that is required for a wearer's particular injury. Typically, more immobilization would be required for acute injuries, while less immobilization would be required for chronic injuries so that a wearer can still continue with normal activities while the wrist brace is being worn.
As shown in FIGS. 5-8, the Mills patent also discloses a splint 30 that is formed with a curvature 32 to conform to the wearer's wrist and palm, whereby the splint is inserted into the pocket 22 of the wrist brace, and the wrist support is wrapped around the wearer's wrist and hand and secured with fastening straps 18, 19, and 20. The splint is generally inflexible and provides more immobilization to the wearer's wrist when inserted within the pocket. Thus, the splint would most often be used with acute type injuries, or those chronic injuries where more immobilization is desired.
The various material portions, the fasteners, and the splint provide the versatility to adjust the amount of immobilization depending on the type of injury involved. Mills also discloses a brace that is easy to use given the configuration of the fasteners and flexible material. Despite these improvements, additional innovations in wrist braces to promote better treatment of wrist injuries are also desired.
It would be advantageous to provide a wrist brace that can be adjusted to provide support for a range of injuries, both chronic and acute. In addition, it would be advantageous to have a wrist brace that is easy to use. Finally, it would also be desirable to have a wrist brace that can be used on either a right or left wrist of a wearer.